Twisting yoga poses increase spine mobility, relieve blocked energies and stimulate the digestive system and other organs. This helps to restore and retain the spine’s natural range of motion.
Including twists in our yoga practice will help you to find ease, balance, and serenity in all areas of our life. Twisting and lengthening our spine can make us feel re-energized and revitalized. Squeezing out toxins from our abdominal organs will cleanse and refresh us, inside and out.
From an Ananda Yoga perspective, the true “core” is the astral spine. As Swami Kriyananda has often said, “that’s where the real spiritual work takes place.” Working with the body’s subtle energy, especially the energy of the astral spine, is what Ananda Yoga is about.
As Paramhansa Yogananda often said,
“A bent spine is the enemy of self-realization.”
“The Spine is the Highway to the Infinite
Your Own body is the temple of God.
It is within yourself that God must be realised.
This is the path of Kriya Yoga!”
Lord Matsyendra
Yoga postures are often named for mythological figures in the hope that practicing them might help us attain some of their heroic attributes. The story of the fish Matsyendra highlights the virtues of concentration and stillness—and offers a parable for the transformative power of yoga.
According to the ancient tale, the Hindu deity Shiva was on an island, explaining the mysteries of yoga to his consort Parvati. A fish near the shore remained motionless and listened with rapt attention. When Shiva realized that the fish had learned yoga, he blessed it as Matsyendra, Lord of the Fishes. The fish then took a divine form, came on land, and assumed a seated spinal twisting posture that allowed him to fully absorb the teachings.
Yogic lore credits this twist, Matsyendrasana (Complete Lord of the Fishes Pose) with such important benefits that it is one of the few asanas described in a seminal 14th-century manual on yoga called the Hatha Yoga Pradipika. This classic guide anoints Matsyendra as the first human teacher of hatha yoga and says that the posture dedicated to him fans the digestive fire, cures all diseases, and awakens kundalini shakti, the dormant feminine energy coiled at the base of the spine in the form of a serpent.
Ardha Matsyendrasana (Half Lord of the Fishes Pose) is a milder version of this twist. Practicing Ardha Matsyendrasana on a regular basis will keep you feeling young, vital, and healthy!
Physically the twist adjusts the vertebrate and exercises the spine making it more limber. The posture is also good for constipation and for the sex organs, It beneficially stimulates all the trunk organs – the kidneys, liver and spleen -and is good for a stiff or aching back.
When done correctly, this deep, seated twist has the power to transform our spine.
- It increases spinal rotation, boosts blood flow to the disks, and builds strength and flexibility in the erector spinae muscles, the tiny muscles that support the spine.
- The posture also nourishes the internal organs, because alternately compressing and stretching the torso is thought to increase circulation to those areas
- In Ardha Matsyendrasana the stomach, intestines, and kidneys get a nice squeeze, stimulating digestion and elimination, while the shoulders, hips, and neck get a wonderful stretch.
- Helps in stabilizing nervous disorders.
- Problems related to menstrual cycle are eased.
Spiritually, if one can relax in this pose, one will feel that the energy is being forced up the spine into the region opposite to the heart. Ardha-Matsyendrasana by forcing the energy up the spine into this region, helps to stimulate the anahat (heart) chakra and awaken the feeling of love.
According to chapter 1, Verse 27 of the Hatha Yoga Pradipika, “practice of this pose Matsyendrasana increases the digestive fire to such an incredible capacity; this will eradicate all stomach diseases, thus awakening the serpent power and bringing equilibrium in the Bindu”. In the practice of Matsyendrasana, the posture is a combination of balancing (grounding the sit bones), twisting (twisting from the base of the spine), bounding (gripping the opposite thigh with the opposite hand), deep flexing of the various joints (shoulders, spine, hips, knees, and ankles), and lengthening and contracting of the spinal muscles. Through the lens of symbolism, the wisdom of Shiva and Parvathi can be perceived as the inner voice, and Matsyendranath can be associated with someone who is in search of his true identity. Once he becomes aware and listens to the inner voice, he is set on the path of enlightenment. Initially, this pose can seem like a restrictive pose, but consistent sadhana, as practiced by the Sage Matsyendranath inside the fish’s belly, can help overcome the challenges thrown by this pose.
My Journey
This particular asana flows naturally through me and that is what made me fall more in love with this asana. Initially I felt it was more because of me being flexible physically that allows me to enter into the pose naturally.
With regular practice I realised the importance of being balanced even when life twists you. Also all twists are not to derail you but strengthen you further. The feeling of being poised and balanced, stretching our inner limits and yet wrap ourselves in warmth is my learning from the asana.
While I was enjoying this practice, recently in one of our class we got introduced to different variations of the asana and I got acquainted with Purna Matsyendrasana. While I was excited to learn the complete asana, I realised that didn’t come easily as ardha matsyendrasana came through.
This caught me with mixed feelings, feeling enlightened to know there is a ‘full’ to the ‘half’ and understanding the limitations to get through the completeness. This got me more ‘grounded’ to face my own realities and embrace every new development with the fact that there is always a ‘fullness’ to be strived for. Not only physically, but spiritually, emotionally and mentally too!